CLARK m@ca.on.york_county.toronto.globe_and_mail 2006-05-27 published
Laura Brigitte
LOIJENS and Jesse Adam
CLARK -- Match:
By Judith TENENBAUM,
Page M4
Romance is tested if two hearts beat to different drummers. In
1997, when Laura
LOIJENS was introduced to Jesse
CLARK at the
pub in Clark Hall, a landmark at Queen's University, she mused
at the nominal coincidence and saw him as "funny, intelligent"
and not like so many of the other young men she had met.
"She was smart, pretty and nice. I called her the next day, and
on our first date I was nervous and a total idiot," Mr.
CLARK
confesses. For all that, the couple were soon "mutually exclusive." After
graduating in 1998 in honours English, Mr.
CLARK quickly concluded
that a writing career would be problematic. Coming from a musical
family, he had exhibited talent in choirs and singing opera as
a youth. "I've always loved classical music, and it got its hooks
back into me," he explains, and so he entered the opera program
at the University of Toronto, eventually launching a career as
a performer.
Meanwhile, Laura
LOIJENS, who earned the highest marks for 1998
in nursing science, heeded parental advice and, using nursing
as a portal, gained acceptance into medicine -- also at the University
of Toronto.
"Laura knew very little about English literature, and I knew
less about nursing," Mr.
CLARK says, laughing as he remembers
their early years together. "In keeping with this theme, nine
years later, Laura knows very little about opera and I know less
about medicine."
Today, they continue to juggle careers and companionship. He
tours with various opera ensembles and she adopts a locum approach
to family practice. Locums provide relief for local doctors based
in small or remote communities, and the underlying hope is that
visiting doctors may enjoy their short-term stints so much that
they decide to locate there permanently. "I like to travel and
see new places in Ontario and around Canada. This way you set
your own schedule," explains Ms.
LOIJENS, who believes her locum
work also provides an opportunity to explore diverse medical
approaches.
"Our relationship is a work in progress. It's not always puppy
dogs and ice cream," Mr.
CLARK says. "The hardest part is what
I call re-entry, when you get back from somewhere. In my business,
you have this artistic high, and for the first couple of days
[afterward] it's awkward being with another person, even though
you love her. From an individual mindset to get back into that
couple lifestyle is difficult."
"When you are apart so much, you have to trust each other, because
you meet so many people," Ms.
LOIJENS observes. "It takes effort
and patience, but I love it. It would be so boring being married
to another doctor."
In aid of this relationship philosophy, they manage to arrange
mutual "vacations" -- and increase their understanding -- by
occasionally spending time at each other's work locations. Both
want children, but for a long time they felt that marriage was
not a prerequisite. Until one day, completely on a whim, Mr.
CLARK
"woke up and thought, 'I'm going to buy a ring and surprise her.'"
On June 25, 2005, as they strolled through Kay Gardner Beltline
Park, Ms. LOIJENS recalls, "We were chatting away, and suddenly
I realized I was talking to myself. I looked around and Jesse
was kneeling, holding a box, and he said I had to open it."
Fascinated by old bank buildings and seeking a funky and not
exorbitant wedding venue, the couple were enamoured with the
Ontario Heritage Centre on Adelaide Street, an authentically
restored 1909 Edwardian banking hall.
"A modern civil ceremony is a public declaration and there has
to be a certain grandeur, but it doesn't have to involve big,
puffy, meringue dresses," Mr.
CLARK says with a chuckle.
During the April 19 evening nuptials, before Rev. Tina
GABRIEL,
the bride became Doctor Laura
CLARK.
Now, if the newlyweds can find
a Rossini opera with a role for a non-singing doctor, things
will really come together.

COE m@ca.on.grey_county.artemesia.flesherton.the_flesherton_advance 2006-09-20 publishedCOE,
Maurice and Jean - 50th anniversary
We wish to thank everyone who came to our 50th anniversary celebration.
A big thank you to Chester and Michael for the wagon ride drawn
by two beautiful horses. It was very enjoyable. We were so pleased
with the music played by Murray
IRWIN,
MarkPARISH, Margaret
McARTHUR,
MargoNEWELL, and Alex and Donna
ALDCORN. We really
enjoyed the Scottish dancing by great-niece Maggie
TAILOR/TAYLOR. A big
thank you to our wonderful family for organizing a great party.
Thank you Friends and family for a very special day.
Maurice and Jean
Page 3

CZUPRYNA m@ca.on.middlesex_county.london.london_free_press 2006-12-02 publishedCZUPRYNA,
Trina
{BRADFIELD} and Brad - Happy 1st Anniversary
Family and Friends were honored on December 2, 2005 to join together
and witness Trina
BRADFIELD and Brad
CZUPRYNA exchange marriage
vows. Father Chris blessed us with a beautiful ceremony. Although
the first nasty winter storm threatened our plans, it was a wonderful
evening for a very loved and cherished couple. Happy Anniversary
kids. God Bless you